


Old habits

by kiimigi



Series: old habits [1]
Category: Red vs. Blue
Genre: 2 v 2, Action, Angst, Can be read platonically or romantically - Freeform, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Missing Scene, mentions of self harm, season 12, wash & locus vs tucker & felix, wash and the reds time with the feds
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-20
Updated: 2020-06-20
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:27:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,992
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24817579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kiimigi/pseuds/kiimigi
Summary: The Fed's base is attacked by the Rebels. He had hoped Tucker would have had enough sense to stay out of trouble, to stay off the front lines. But here Tucker is. after months of fighting and searching he’s dropped into his lap. This is the closest chance to finding them he’s had in months, it could be the only chance. If only Tucker would stop trying to stab him.aka: Wash and the Red's time with the Feds and Wash & Locus vs Tucker & Felix
Relationships: Franklin Delano Donut & Agent Washington, Lavernius Tucker/Agent Washington
Series: old habits [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1795108
Comments: 1
Kudos: 17





	Old habits

It was beginning to snow. Wash held his palm up as a snowflake floated softly into his outstretched hand, slowly melting and leaving a damp spot. The air was crisp and sharp here and his breath clouded in front of him as if he sank against the railing. The snow capped mountains stretched before him. They seemed daunting now. Tucker and Caboose and the Reds were somewhere out there. And somewhere too were Carolina and Epsilon. Worrying his hands, wash wondered how he found himself in the thick of it yet again. 

“Here for the fresh air?” Wash had heard him coming up of course but Doyle seemed startled to see him. It seems like he wasn’t the first person to use this place as a hide away. Doyle looked around as if he couldn’t decide if he should leave Wash to his brooding or risk interputting. Finally he decides to say “How are you liking the new armor?”

“Oh, it's great. Thank you” Wash said. Doyle had given him a new suit of armor in what Wash thought must have been an attempt to try and win him over or to smooth things over at the very least. 

The armour was a sleek black and came with some enhancements. He had expected cloaking like Locus or a light shield like Felix so Wash blinked a little stunned and his interest peaked for obvious reasons when Doyle had pointed him to the armour with an EMP apparently. 

“You haven’t gotten rid of my old armour did you? This armor is great, it's just I'm kind of used to it” Wash said 

“I’ll have it set out for you” Doyle said nervously before he continues, pulling togathar his courage “you know, Sarge and Donut have been doing great work here. There is a shift in the air. I suspect it's something like hope. Once you find the rest of your team what do you intend to do?”

“I don’t know?” Wash said. Doyle had set all his hope onto them ane Wash felt it like a heat down his spine “We’ll just have to find them first”

This conversation was growing to be painfully awkward and he suspects now that he had stolen Doyle's corner as well and he’s keeping him from his own broody. Wash wasn't picky and could brood somewhere else so he said “I should go” 

Finding Sarge and Donut wasn’t hard. He just had to follow the sounds of impending chaos. While Wash had been busy running missions with Locus, Sarge had taken to training the recruits - finding red replacements more accurately. Having people actually willing going along with his crazy stunts seemed to have gone to his head a bit though. Donut on the other hand had gotten close to most people in the bases already and Wash hadn’t the heart to tell him it would be better not to get too attached to them just yet. 

His previous interactions with the Red team had been scarce at best. He had caught glimpses of them during his morning jogs around the canyon, he couldn't help watch the mayhem they got to in their side of the canyon. He didn't dare get closer lest Sarge think it was an ambush but that didn't stop him rubbernecking like watching a car accident or noticing the sounds of mayhem echoing across the canyon and hoping the fire didn't spread to their side of the canyon like last time. 

When he finally found Sarge and Donut, they’re not surrounded by Sarge's minions like he usually is. 

“So how did it go?” Donut said as he walked up to them “Did you have fun playing with Locus. You two were going for hours”

“I wasn't playing. I was on a mission.” Wash said “Well, I managed to retrieve some information. Hopefully it leads somewhere this time."

"You’ve gotten pretty comfortable with Locus” Sarge said with an edge of suspicion in his voice.

“I don't like it anymore more than you do, Sarge” Wash said “but he’s good and I need him if we want to find the rest.”

“No, good job, frecklancer” Sarge said, catching Wash off guard a little “you know what I always say-?”

“you just got Sarged?” wash said 

“No, although it is a classic,” Sarge said, “it keeps your enemies closer. So good job, you have successfully fooled the enemy. Keep an extra round for him. Except don't think you can fool me! Don't think I don't know you're still a dirty blue. A dirty blue in black and yellow armor!”

“What Sarge is trying to say is that you're still a blue at heart” Donut said. He doesn't know why but that warms him a little. Wash remembered when he had woken up from brain surgery yet again, Sarge and donut already by his side, though he now thinks that may have fallen into the enemy-closer thing again.

“Wait, what are you up to” He’s come to learn that around the reds and blues the quiet was just the build up to the next storm and should not be trusted. He looked at the seemingly random assortment of parts collected, again should not be trusted. Sarge showed surprising ability in mechanics. Wash was surprised and very impressed at what Sarge could do with a random hand full of gears, wires, a toothpick and duct tape. He won’t be making that mistake again. 

“Isn’t it obvious?” Sarge said with a swell of pride “It’s a radio. We’ve already intercepted some rebel messages.”

Wash blinked, stunned. 

“I don't know what to say, I'm impressed guys” Wash said "if you could intercept-"

"Which useless of course! What are we going to do with messages!” Sarge said in full confidence. “Instead we shall use it to contact Simmons and activate his sleeper agent programme. Imagine the look on Grif's face. He wouldn't even know what hit him. Now all we need to do is wait for Simmons to find our messages"

“And I immediately take back my statement” Wash said “I don't know what i was expecting"

“It’s a flawless plan” Sarge said “good thing we all already agreed that I was the leader"

“What? When did this happen"

“During your surgery.”

“What!” his voice screeching up a couple of octaves.

“You went and got a bump of the head humpty dumpty, which meant that I had to take charge.” Sarge continued “Don't you see Wash, after years of being roped into blue messes, we finally have a tactical advantage over the blues. There is only one blue and three reds. The way i see it, we’re in charge here, frecklancer.”

“I mean it is reds and blues, silly” Donut said, bumping shoulders with him “and not blue and reds”

“Don't worry your pretty little blue brain about it. It's all an elaborate ruse. I promise you will be impressed when all is revealed, isn't that right Simmons-"

There was a empty silence

“Huh” Sarge said, looking around himself.

* * *

Sirens blare to life as an explosion rocked the base. Wash caught himself on the edge of the table and Locus stumbled next to him as the ground trembled. Doyle already looked ready to faint bracing himself against the table. 

"Get him out of here" Wash shouted at Doyle's guards as he grabbed his rifle. They burst outside the base which had already dissolved into chaos of people running in all directions. There were thick plumes of black smoke from the other bases. Two more explosions go off and Wash catches himself against the wall before he and Locus fall into step again as they take off in the direction of the explosions. 

“Talk to me, Locus” Wash said as they ran

“Three explosions so far.” Locus said, scanning his hub “At the armory, Hanger 6 and the air strip. Unknown number of rebels."

"I'll take the hanger" Wash said 

"I'll go to the armory then.” Locus said “We can meet at the airstrip"

Gun fire told them they were close, and they surge faster as they round a corner just in time to see a rebel with his rifle aimed at one of Sarge’s men. Wash is faster on the trigger and shot the rebel in the back. 

“Where is Sarge and Donut?” He shouted at the recruit over the noise of the chaos.

“Sarge- Sarge took some of the men, I don’t know where” the recruit said a little shaken “Donut..Donut, I'm not too sure, the last I saw him was at the Armory with the radio Sarge built”

 _Oh no_. Hearing the Armory sent a cold spike of panic through him and Wash whirled around and took off in the direction of the Armory, nearly running into Locus as he did.

“I'll take the Armory” he called over his shoulder “We’ll meet up at the air strip”

* * *

Dammit! How did they get past their defenses? Wash nearly ran straight into a rebel soldier. Wash used his momentum to knock him to the ground, it was less skills and more running straight into them, and slamming the butt of his rifle into their face.

Locus’s sniper shots were like distant thunder. He mentally took note of where Sarge would probably be. Last time he saw Sarge he was in the field with his red replacements somehow convincing them to do stunts. There's not too much to worry about him, surrounded by his men unless he does something really stupid. **  
**

He’s much more concerned about Donut. If he had been in the Armory when the first explosions went off, he could be trapped or hurt or worse. Wash shook the thought off and pressed on. 

He's so deep in thought that he nearly misses it.

A flash of color.

A flash of _Teal_.

It felt like all the air had been knocked out of his lungs as Tucker ran across the path ahead of him. No it couldn’t be. There's no way. 

It was his worst fear. He had hoped Tucker would have had enough sense to stay out of trouble, to stay off the front lines at least until he found them. But here Tucker is on the front lines. 

Donut may be hurt. He could need his help. To leave him there felt too much like a betrayal. 

But Tucker was right _there_ \- after months of fighting and searching he’s dropped into his lap. 

This is the closest chance of finding them he’s had in months, it could be the only chance

He groaned bouncing on his toes as he grappled with himself.

Wash darted off to the side, away from the armory. There would be medics he reasoned with himself. Sarge would be there for him to look out for him. Guilt settled in his chest as he left Donut to possibly die, knowing full well Donut would have come for him.

* * *

A high pitched scream kicked Wash out of his thoughts and a chill shot down his spine and he pitched forward in a dead sprint, skidding around the corner and catching himself on the door frame as their room door hissed open. He already had his pistol out. His panicked spiked as he saw their room in mess. It looked like a hurricane had blown through, the mattress was dragged from the bunk and debris scattered the floor.

“are you alright, Wash?” Donut asked in all innocence with his cocked to the side. Wash took in the scene properly now. Donut balanced Sarge as he stood perched precariously on an assembly of furniture as he strung up a big bit of red. “Why do you have your gun out?”

“what’s going on here?” Wash asked.

“You see, while you were out I thought I would spruce up the place a little" Donut said 

“You're decorating?” Wash said, disbelief in his voice. He sighed in resignation. Wash finally holsters his weapon again, convinced nothing is going to jump at him from beneath the mess. 

“Yup,” Donut said “I thought I’d make it look a bit more welcoming and homely for anyone you would bring back to the room”

“I’m not going to bring anyone back to the room” Wash said

“Not with this place looking this this your won’t”

Wash already felt out of breath from trying to keep up with them. He had to sit down. He made to sit down at the chair but Sarge jumped down from his spot and shooed him away from the red claimed chair and he shuffled into his side of the room that Sarge had marked out as the blue base and sat on the edge of his bed. Wash rubbed at his shoulders and worked a crick out of his neck. After sitting in near silence for 12 hours with Locus as they staked out a base, speaking to the reds for 5 minutes was too loud.

In the past, they had only talked when something went wrong or they were being attacked. For the first few weeks, they had been moved around a lot by the Federation, before they settled into this base. Since then, Wash had to adapt to a whole new routine again. There was no Tucker to wrangle or Caboose to sate here. No pancakes in the morning. It made him ache for the little comforts of home. 

“Are you alright, Wash?” Donut said coming to his side of the room. 

“I’m fine” Wash said, putting his hands down

“You didn't sleep well last night again did you, sleeping beauty” Sarge commented. Washington flushed because no he hadn't. His nightmares were worse than they had been in a long time and it had left him feeling vulnerable and on edge. 

“But don't you need your beauty sleep” Donut said 

His complexion was the least of his problems right now Washington thought but didn’t say it out loud. At least not to Donut especially since sometimes he doesn’t know how to talk to him still, doesn't know how to look him in the eyes sometimes. There is so much left unsaid between them with Donut’s easy forgiveness brushing everything under the rug. 

Suddenly hands were on his shoulders and working into sore muscles. It’s unexpected and way too near the base of his neck and Wash jumped away from Donut, scrambling away and nearly falling off the bed.

“What are you doing?”

“Your really tight, wash” Donut said 

Washington waited but the bow chicka bow wow he’s expecting but it never comes

 _Huh_ Washington thought to himself 

“I’m fine, Donut. Dr Grey said everything alright”

“Now, don't be silly,” Donut said, repositioning himself behind Wash again. “I’m really good with my hands. Ask anybody”

“I don't know how you did things at blue base, but spaday is on every second Wednesday of the month” Sarge said

“So you're telling me Grif let donut massage him”

“He always pretends not to like it at first but he's the one that gets most into it. By the end he's begging me not to stop. I can make a guy melt when I want to”

Wash had no choice but to submit to a massage. Wash was rigid at first but Donut hadn’t been lying and soon enough he was a puddle in his bed. Donut was talking with Sarge, his voice was close to his ear and it sent little tingles down his spine. Donut’s hands stopped for a second and Wash hummed for him to continue. Soon enough he was dozing off on the edge of sleep that he didn’t even realize that Donut was talking to him 

“but that was back when you were mean Wash” Donut said “you were a lot more melodramatic back then”

“you thought I was melodramatic?” Wash asked, his cheeks warming a little. 

“Oh don't worry about it, Wash, you made it work for you” Donut said “Besides we all have our thing”

Wash hummed sinking back into his pillow but in its relaxed state his mind wondered somewhere dangerous 

“Do you think they’re alright?” Wash said softly before he could stop himself.

“There's no need to worry I’m sure their alright, Wash” Doughnut said “we’ve found yourself in stickier situations than this before”

"You don't understand, Donut. We're the team leaders" Sarge stood in front of them, his hands on his hips. Doughnut sat back to look at him and Wash sat up too. Wash took in the proud tilt of his chin and chest puffed out . He must be feeling the absence of the men as well. "It’s our job to look out for our them and make sure they make it home safe. You understand that too right, Wash”

Wash nods back.

"That's so sweet, Sarge," Donut said.

"I mean how will they function without us? Who is Simmons if he doesn't have me to suck up to? Who is Grif if he's not avoiding my orders. The last time I left alone they nearly got executed!”

“That was at the same time I was in the desert with Tucker right?” Donut said. Wash can tell that they're about to derail themselves into a wild winding tangent that could escalated to infinity but for once he doesn't try to keep them on track as Sarge rambled on. “I missed a lot of the adventures, didn’t I”

Wash can't think about how far they’ve come since he met them. He was grateful for that brief sliver of time where everything was alright. Washington can’t help but chuckle as the moment pulled up the memory of the time after Sidewinder, the sound of water at Valhalla, pancakes and blankets and the most intense match of capture the flag that ended with a stand off. 

“This was nothing compared to the time we went to fulfill an alien prophecy” Sarge said 

"You’re just messing with me now," Washington laughed. 

"I’m surprised Caboose or Tucker never told you that" Donut said “but didn’t that turn out to be fake”

"I guess I just assumed you stood around chatting all day" Wash said

"I mean that was 90% of the time then we would go on crazy adventures."

"The world doesn't revolve around you Freelancers, you know” Sarge said “We went for tons of crazy adventures before you freelancers turned up, like the time we time travelled."

"That was a Freelancer. Wyoming was a Freelancer" Wash said “I’ve read your files. I think me and the Meta sparked like two adventures, Carolina had one and Tex and Church had the rest so your life does kind of revolve around Freelancer”

"Well we beat you in the end so suck it, Freelancer" Sarge barked

"But you must have gotten up to some cool adventures as well with Your freelancer buddies" Donut said.

Some days it was too painful to think back to the Mother of Invention, those memories soured by the ending. But when his thoughts do drift back to that time, its never about the missions. He remembered sitting in the bunks playing cards, that one time he tried to arm wrestle Maine and all the in between moments that made the ending all that much sour. They always had their squabbles but the second their boots touched the ground the trust was a tangible thing.

"Yeah, I guess there were some" and he told them about the time they jumped off a building. 

* * *

Wash was chasing shadows as he ran the direction he thought had seen Tucker. The base was suddenly quieter here with everybody running the opposite direction. He slowed and turned in a loose circle looking for any sign of him. 

There was a shimmer across the way and Tucker appeared with his back to Wash. He was suddenly too real, after all this time, his heart swelled at the sight of him safe and sound. Tucker's back was to him, crouched down and sneaking. Wash called out to him, but he was too far away and Tucker didn't hear him, keeping his eyes front. Tucker lifted his gun up. What was he doing?

Wash followed his line of sight and his heart sank. Because Donut was standing there. He was too far away to notice him, and he was busy helping some recruits. He hadn’t noticed Tucker yet. He could see how Tucker may misinterpret the recruits actions as hurting Donut.

Tucker's finger curled around the trigger as he lined up the shot. Tucker didn’t know.

“Tucker!” he calls out more urgently but it was no use. Wash was panicking as he looked in between Tucker and Donut. There was only one way. He swore as he pulled out his own rifle. He wished Locus was here. He trusted his skill as a sniper more than his own. One wrong shot and he could hit Tucker or he could miss and Tucker would shoot the recruits or he could miss and shoot Donut. 

Wash nestled the butt of the rifle in his shoulder and stilled his hands with a long breath. Wash squeezed the trigger. The shot felt like a punch to the gut. 

Tucker cried out as his rifle was ripped from his grip, clattering to the ground. Tucker ducked for cover, spinning to see him. 

Then Wash remembered that he wasn't wearing his normal armor. In that horrible moment he realized Tucker doesn’t know it's him and he’s just shot at him. 

Tucker makes runs at him, his hand goes for his sword and his sword flared to life.

Wash released an EMP pulse just as Tucker swung down at him. Tucker swore as his sword flickered and stuttered before the blade was gone. At the same time, Wash heard something malfunction in his helmet and when he swore his voice came distorted and deeper.

Back in the Project, he never used his enhancement because there had been horror stories about agents that did. Also, there was always a draw back to the modifications and for him, there was always a chance that his EMP backfired and left him dead in the water. 

Tucker whipped around and threw a punch. Wash was faster and blocked it easily. Wash is suddenly being tackled from the side, hitting the ground hard. He flipped over and back onto his feet in one motion, getting his guard up.

Felix was standing next to Tucker.

Fighting Tucker alone would have been easy, but with Felix this could get bad fast. 

“I was wondering what was taking so long” Felix said, painfully casual “All the bombs have been set” 

“Help me finish this guy and we can get the hell out of here” Tucker said

“oh, now you're asking for my help. I thought you could hand yourself” 

“Just shut up and fight.” 

It felt like he was having an out of body experience. It’s been so long that he had an outsider's perspective of the reds and blues and their bickering. 

Tucker and Felix came at him and he staggered back at the sudden barrage of attacks, pushing him back and back. 

They struck one after another then at the same time coming at him from different directions. He can’t defend his back from Felix while Tucker came in from the front. He ducked under Tucker’s punch only to run straight into Felix’s kick. They crowded him, attacking at a rhythm that left little opening for Wash. Wash stumbled back after a hard hit from Felix and Tucker slipped into his guard, snapping his face to the side when he punched him. There is something angry and sharp behind him, something so full of desperation and frustration. 

Tucker had improved. Tucker had been training that was for sure. Pride swelled when he recognized a move he had taught Tucker. If only they hadn’t been turned on him. There was no space to move, there was no time to do anything but react. They were coming at him too quickly to make Tucker see who he was, to take off his helmet or do anything. 

That was just it, he wasn’t trying to hurt Tucker, he didn’t want to fight them. He was playing on defensive and not hitting as hard as he could. He just needed Tucker to see. This wasn’t a real fight for Wash. 

The problem was that to Tucker this was a very real fight. They were going to kill him. Something shifts in his head and his mindset steels.

Tucker was obviously the weaker of the two. The next time Tucker lunged for him, instead of dodging out of the way like he had been doing he rose to meet him. It startled Tucker and Wash caught his arm. Tucker yelped and Wash used his momentum to swing him around and hurtle him straight into Felix. That earned him a little reprise to gather his feet and get his guard up. 

Felix recovered first. Felix unsheathed his combat knife from his holster at the small of his back and lunged at him. He's not the only one that's good with knives and Wash knew too well that he’d be carrying more than more. 

Felix is expecting him to meet him in the lunge again but he dove out of the way and behind Felix and grabbed one of Felix’s spare knives straight from his sheath before jumping back again. 

He had taught everything Tucker knew but he hadn't taught him everything _Wash_ knew. It's easy to keep Tucker in between him and Felix, dancing around him and keeping himself at Tucker's back.

Felix growled in frustration and threw his knife at Wash.

“Watch it!” Tucker yelped. Wash kicked him out of the way of the knife and he only barely managed to twist away himself. Only to run straight into Felix’s light shield, slamming hard into it and dropping to the ground. 

He rolled back to his feet, slashing the knife at Tucker when he came in close. Tucker dodged clumsily away from it, leaving his back open to him. How many times has he told him not to do that? If he had wanted him dead he would have been dead 5 fives over already. Still he wouldn't let the opening go to waste.

Tucker stilled as Wash came up behind him and held the knife to his throat. Felix stilled too, swearing. 

“Just don’t do anything, Tucker,” Wash said, his voice still distorted. 

“How the fuck do you know my name” Tucker snapped. Before he could answer, there was the smell of burning and a second later Tucker’s sword sputtered back to life as the EMP wore off. 

Wash jumped back as Tucker sliced it back, the tip of the sword slicing clean through the front of his suit. 

The energy sword is humming dangerously, bathing Tucker in ominous shifting light as Wash edged backward. 

“Get him Tucker!” Felix called as Tucker vaulted over Felix and came at him from above. 

* * *

In Valhalla, he had at least gotten into the routine of sleep. Tucker used to whine about how weird it was to wake up and to find him in the same spot that he left him when he had gone to sleep.

Not getting shot at and betrayed every other day helped a lot and his nightmares weren’t as bad as they used to be. In Valhalla, he slept through the night for the first time in a long time.

But they’re not in Valhalla anymore. He had been a little nervous about sleeping in the same room with Sarge and Donut initially but he didn’t really have a choice, did he. In this new base, he can't relax, let alone sleep. He grabbed bouts of sleep when he could, on pelican rides back from missions and with his head against the porcelain tiles as he showered just enough so he could function.

Donut went to sleep ridiculously early. Sarge and him would stay up a little longer before Sarge too fell asleep, shotgun cradled like a teddy bear. It turned out that Sarge had fitful sleep sometimes but he didn't ever wake up. Wash usually stayed up a lot longer, listening to muffled voices of people walking by outside, watching their shadows flicker under the door and waiting for one shadow to linger too long.

But there had been one night, not long after the surgery when he was still groggy from the head injury and the back of his head was still throbbing and it's too much like right after Epsilon, so of course he had fallen crashed right into the worst nightmare he’s had in a while.

_He was thrown onto his front onto the operation table, held down by fabric cuffs, screaming thrashing. He can't even see it coming as the doctors talk over him as he screamed and begged. They won't listen to him as he screamed that they were hurting us and screamed. A scalpel was raised as they attacked the back on his neck._

He had woken up screaming. He had bolted upright, his hands flying to his implants, fingers gouging and tearing into his skin as he scratched himself and pulled out hair.

 _He’s still in there_. Wash can feel Epsilon scuttling about his brain tearing it apart.

 _He’s still in there’_ s He’s still screaming and crying and he’s hurting himself and they’re going to hurt them and he has to protect-

Someone caught his wrist, trying to pull his hands away and he tried to shove them off. Someone cupped his cheek, their hands over his own. His breath is coming back to him as the residual terror slowly slid from him. It was dark and couldn’t see shadows against black 

“Allison?”

“Nope”

That's right Allison is gone. He wants to sob. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to focus

“Tucker?”

“Nope. It's me silly”

“Donut?”

That’s not right he shot him. Donut is dead. Details are slowly coming back to him as he calmed down and he sucked in oxygen. The lights are on and he can see Sarge hovering. Donut was sitting by his side, his hands grasped in Donut’s shirt. His shirt is pushed up from where he had tried to fight him off and his fingers trail over puckered scar tissue at his waist and his eyes waver at scars like York’s on his face.

“You okay, Wash? You scared me there?”

No, that’s right. Donut survived. He's so glad he survived. Donut forgave him. He doesn't hate him. He’s here asking if he's alright. I shot him and left him for dead. Did I even apologize for that? Something wet slid down the back on his neck and he touched it, his finger came away red.

“Sorry” he mumbled for more than that as he looked down dumbly into his hands. I’ll make it up to you. He’ll get him home safe. He owed it to him

Donut let him sag and Sarge sat with Wash and helped talked him down from it.

* * *

He counters Tucker's swish with a stab. It’s a way that he had countered his attacks countless times before in training and something like recognition flickered across Tucker for a split second. But that second is gone as Locus kneed Tucker brutally in his stomach that sent him to the ground. 

“Fight properly” Locus growled like a reprimand. “You’re going to die if you don’t” 

“I know,” Wash said, his voice foreign even to him. Locus and him stood back to back as Felix and Tucker circled them.

Everything was wrong here. They are fighting back to back, in perfect sync. They’d been working together, just long enough to know how the other moved and attacked. 

It was obvious that Tucker was the weak link and Locus was going after him brutally and exploiting his every opening in a way Wash had not. Wash cringed anytime Locus landed a brute punch on Tucker. Tucker had his sword and Wash knew how powerful it could be. It could go from bad to worse very quickly if he got a lucky strike in. They were going round in circles and Wash could hardly keep track of it all as he bobbed and weaved. 

The flow and motion of the fight rotates, ebbed and flowed in and out as they spiral each other. He was fighting Felix then Tucker then Felix again then he’s catching Locus’ punch before he can really hurt Tucker.

Behind him Tucker swore as Locus managed to get close to him and slammed his elbow into his jaw. Tucker wasn’t good enough to add speed and he’s getting tired, lagging behind Locus’ attacks and not quite keeping his guard up. He wasn’t paying attention to his own fight and he got the air knocked out of him as Felix kicked him in the side. He staggered back and collided into Locus, knocking him off balance, long enough for Tucker a chance to jump back. 

The longer this fight went on the worst it could get with nobody but him holding his punches. He needed to end this quickly. 

The key was again Tucker. 

He vaulted over Locus and slammed into Tucker, sending him stumbling back. He should have prepared Tucker more. All the careless errors are easy ways to kill him. If he couldn’t get Tucker to see who he was, he would have to subdue him.

What he lacked in actual skill, Tucker made up in creativity.

“I didn’t think I’d end this day sword fighting with a guy” He’s so mouthy when he should be focusing on the fight and if he wasn’t already used to it Wash would have been distracted by it. The innuendo is almost too obvious. Any other time he would roll his eyes. 

“What? No bow chicka bow wow?” Wash said.

That caught Tucker off guard and Tucker hesitates for a second movement stuttering "What did you just say?" 

That gave Wash the opening he needed. Tucker yelped as he slipped into Tucker's guard. He wrenched his wrist back and Tucker let out a horrible sickening cry as Wash nearly dislocated his wrist. The sword clattered to the ground.

Wash pulled him off balance, sweeped his feet out from under him and sent him to the ground. He tried to brace his fall the best he can but Tucker still hits the ground hard, teeth clacking.

“Wait stop” Tucker was braced beneath him expecting a killing strike. It doesn't come. There is a sudden stillness with only Tucker panting beneath him. 

“Wash?” Tucker says slowly, unsure and relief sweeps over him.

“yeah” he said like a sigh of relief

"Wash!" The confusion is gone from his voice replaced by pure delight and shock. He must be beaming. Tucker reached up to take off Wash’s helmet but his hand jerked back as Wash cried out, jerking forward as a knife lodged itself into his shoulder. 

Wash’s arms went out under him and he braced himself on the ground beside Tucker’s head. He yanked the knife out of him, warm blood seeping out of him already.

“Wait Felix stop!” Tucker cried. 

Locus was grabbing at Wash, yanked him away just as more explosions went off. It felt like it had been right on top of them as his teeth rattle. His head whipped around, looking around for Tucker and he found him being dragged away by felix. 

“We’ve got to go!” Felix yelled

“Wash!” Tucker shouted over his shoulder.

Wash is about to call back, his legs scramble to get him but he yelped as he was thrown over Locus’s shoulder and flung behind cover just another explosion goes off too close for comfort. Once his ears stopped ringing, he sagged behind cover and knew Tucker was out of his reach again. That fact settles thick in his gut. After a while, he pulled himself up. He needed to go find Donut and Sarge to see if they were alright.

**Author's Note:**

> Jason gave us all the Wash & Donut that Miles didn't


End file.
